Colour My World (The Great Commission)

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This is a great activity for the story of the Great Commission and the Ascension of Jesus. Using a fun, colorful demonstration, it emphasizes telling the world about Jesus.

At that time I will give my Spirit even to my servants, both men and women.
And they will prophesy. I will show miracle in the sky and on the earth: blood, fire and thick smoke. The sun will become dark. The moon will become red as blood. And then the great and glorious day of the Lord will come.
Acts 2:18-20, NIV

One teacher says about using this activity:  

“I stressed four important words in the commission: Go, disciple, baptise and teach.

I asked how we could “make disciples” and I got the best possible response. A little girl said, “Well, I think we could just tell someone a story about Jesus and then they will want to follow him. Then they can tell someone else and they will want to follow him. And then they can tell…”  This went on for a little while until someone else interrupted with, “If our whole class goes out today and tells someone then I think everyone in the world will be a disciple in about an hour!””

What beautiful faith!

Supplies:

  • A plate with enough edge that it can hold liquid.
  • A spoon
  • A small bowl or saucer
  • Eye dropper (if you have one)
  • Toothpicks
  • Milk
  • Cooking Oil
  • Dish-washing liquid

Instructions:

  1. Pour a few drops of the dish-washing liquid into a small bowl and soak the ends of toothpicks in it. Set aside.
  2. Pour enough milk into the plate so the bottom of the plate is covered and there is a thin layer of milk.
  3. Pour oil over the milk. You don’t need as much oil as milk but you’ll need enough for it to eventually form a very thin layer over the milk (Don’t stress over the amounts). Stir with the spoon then set the spoon to the side.
  4. Now, spend a few minutes watching the milk and oil separate and form oil clusters. 
    1. While this is happening, talk about how this looks like the world and all its people. People like to live together in families and towns and countries. The plate looks like a map of the world.
    2. Then talk about what it would be like if no one in the world followed Christ.
    3. Now, add drops of food colouring to represent Christians and talk about how Christians live in the world among people who do not follow Christ. (Using a little eye dropper would make the drops not spread so much. Small droplets will make the best effect.)  What if Christians only stayed in one place and never told people about Jesus?
  5. Now for the fun part! Ask the children what they think the world would look like if Christians were to follow the Great Commission and go out into the world to tell other people about Jesus. Then let the children take turns lightly touching the soap end of a toothpick to one of the drops of food colouring. Amazingly, the food colouring shoots out across the milk and oil and makes amazing colours.
  6. Continue doing this until the white plate is full of colours. While you and the children are doing this, talk about how telling people about Jesus changes the world.